Sleek Sheriff's Boat Will Patrol While Escorting Vessels In Port

PORT EVERGLADES -- It looks sleek and it moves fast, but some of the most impressive qualities of the patrol boat unveiled by the Broward Sheriff's Office can't be easily seen from the outside.

Deputy George Ferguson pointed to some of those features while piloting the 41-foot boat around Port Everglades on Friday. Three monitors each displayed a different image.

"This one's our radar," he said. "Here's the infrared -- with this, we can conduct patrols without using heavy lights."

The third monitor was connected to the Coast Guard, enabling the two agencies to trade images instantly so that each can know what the other sees.

The boat's jet propulsion will allow it to keep pace with any bad guys and pose minimal danger to the manatees that often seek the warmth of the Intracoastal waters during the winter months.

Sheriff Ken Jenne briefly discussed those features and others while announcing that the $425,000 boat, named after slain Deputy Sheriff Philip G. Billings, will now be escorting all major vessels into Port Everglades.

"Cruise ships, petroleum tankers, cargo ships -- under new federal regulations, they all need an escort into this port. This is the boat that will do it," he said.

Considering the boat's federally mandated mission, Jenne took advantage of an opportunity to plead his case for federal reimbursement.

"This port is important to the entire region," he said. "The federal government ought to reimburse the Broward County Commission for this expense."

But getting the boat into the water was a higher priority than quibbling about who should foot the bill, he said. It will also be used for harbor patrols, search and rescue operations, and even firefighting.

The Deputy Philip G. Billings will face its first major task on Monday, escorting the Queen Mary II on the cruise ship's highly anticipated South Florida arrival.